University of North Carolina Athletics
ACC Tournament Blog (Saturday)
March 11, 2006 | Men's Basketball
March 11, 2006
For the weekend of the 2006 ACC Tournament members of the UNC Athletic Communications staff (Sean Alford, Adam Lucas, Kevin Best and Matt Bowers) will give Tar Heel Fans up to the minute coverage of the latest events from Greensboro.
11:26 a.m.: A later start makes the beginning of the day much more exciting outside the Greensboro Coliseum. The band has started, the kegs that pour the $6.00 beers have been tapped and the fun and games inside the Pavilion are under way.
12:56 p.m.: The Coliseum has stepped up security after yesterday's quasi bomb-threat. All fans entering through the ticket gate are asked to empty their pockets, followed by a full-body wanding. The scene eerily mirrors the hastle of airport security. Expect delays.
"Yesterday's threats weren't really directed toward anybody," says Officer Lowdermilk of the Greensboro Police Department. "The FBI and the powers that be just made a general assessment of a higher degree of risk for all of the sporting events across the country. But, even with that being said, the nation's terror alert wasn't raised yesterday."
"We're not really doing anything different today. Security is always important here. We've reviewed our contingency plan and know it well. We'll just pay a little closer attention to the entries and exits."
Despite possible threats, fans should know they are in safe hands. After all, Lowdermilk will be pulling for the Tar Heels in today's second semifinal.
12:21 p.m.: Writers from across the country have depleted Carolina's supply of media guides in the press room. We have to set out our emergency backups. It's tough being the most popular team at the tournament.
1:37 p.m.: The PA announcer introduces the starting lineup for the Duke Blue Devils. There's about a 50-50 mixture between cheers and boos among the capacity crowd. No matter how you interpret the reception, one thing's for sure - it's loud.
1:40 p.m.: Duke wins the tipoff. Within 10 seconds J.J. Redick pulls up for a 25-footer and clanks it off the back of the rim. Early signs of an upset?
1:58 p.m.: Wake ties the game with a steal and fast break by Michael Drum. The Greensboro Coliseum erupts.
2:28 p.m.: The Deamon Deacons rush off the court with a two point lead over the Blue Devils, 36-34, at the end of the first half.
2:31 p.m.: Former Tar Heel Billy Cunningham is honored as an ACC Legend during a halftime ceremony. Cunningham, nicknamed the Kangaroo Kid in his time at UNC, averaged 24.8 points and over 15 rebounds per game as a Tar Heel. In his senior season he earned ACC Player of the Year. Among his other accolades are an NBA Championship as a head coach for the Philadelphia 76ers, a place in the Basketball Hall of Fame, top 50 greatest players in NBA History, and first team NCAA All-America.
2:51 p.m.: Roy Williams, Joe Holladay and Steve Robinson watch the Wake Forest-Duke game from the Duke baseline.
3:44 p.m.: Duke advances to Sunday's championship game, defeating Wake Forest 78-66. Now it's up to the Tar Heels to get there.
4:01 p.m.: North Carolina runs onto the court to an environment that feels pretty close to a home game at the Smith Center.
4:08 p.m.: Carolina wins the tip to start the game.
4:57 p.m.: Tyrese Rice hits a last second three pointer to put the Eagles up by one, 43-42, at the half. Tyler Hansbrough leads the Tar Heels in scoring with 13 points, with Wes Miller just one point behind at 12.
5:02 p.m.: We caught up with Tyler Hansbrough's mother Tami and his older brother Greg during halftime.
When asked about Tyler's battles in the paint with Boston College's Sean Wlliams Greg said, ""Tyler's a tough kid and Williams is a tough guy too. But, Tyler will battle. That's for sure. Hopefully in the second half he can dig out and win those battles down low."
Tami, on the other hand, commented, "I'm really proud of the way that he's able to keep his cool about things. He's a great defensive player, a great offensive player, and he's able to keep his emotions in check."
ut, how did the family raise such a beast?
"I do think he's got genetics on his side," Tami proudly explained. "But Tyler has always paid attention to good nutrition. He went to a personal trainer in St. Louis that helped him early on with a diet plan. That really helped him to focus on some goals to get bigger and stronger."
When asked about how the Tar Heels can pull out a 'W' in the second half, Greg put on his coaches face and explained. "We've got to rebound a little better. We're playing well. But, we've got to pick it up a little bit. Hopefully they'll fall off and we'll wear them down with the defense we're playing. If we keep the defense going like we have we'll have a good shot at wearing them down."
Can the Tar Heels bounce back from a one-point deficit? We'll keep our fingers crossed and find out in the next hour.
5:29 p.m.: Coach Williams kicks the scorers table in reaction to a questionable defensive foul called on Tyler Hansbrough. The whistle blows just seconds after BC's Sean Williams nearly clocks Hansbrough in the face with an elbow.
6:10 p.m.: 85-82, Boston College. Having not been on the losing end of a game since February 7, this feels kind of weird. Lots of light blue leaves Greensboro disappointed.
Much like the team itself, the loss sends the blog back to Chapel Hill.
